Hanukkah Eve Wind Storm of 2006
Powerful Hanukkah Eve Storm offshore Washington Coast taken on December 15, 2006 at 2:00 UTC.
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| Type | Extratropical Windstorm |
|---|---|
| Formed | December 13, 2006 |
| Dissipated | December 15, 2006 |
| Lowest pressure | 970 hPa |
| Highest gust | Peak wind gust of 114 mph (183 km/h) at Mt. Hebo, Oregon |
| Maximum snowfall or ice accretion | Unknown |
| Damage | $267 million+ (2006 USD) in US, $89 million+ (2006 CAD) in Canada |
| Casualties | 18 fatalities |
| Areas affected | Washington, Oregon, Idaho,Vancouver Island, and Southern British Columbia |
| Part of the 2006–07 North American winter storms | |
The Hanukkah Eve windstorm of 2006 was a powerful Pacific Northwest windstorm that slammed into the Pacific Northwest region of the United States and southern British Columbia, Canada between December 14, 2006 and December 15, 2006. The storm produced storm to hurricane-force wind gusts and heavy rainfall, causing hundreds of millions of dollars in damage and leaving over 1.8 million residences and businesses without power. Eighteen people were killed, most of whom died of carbon monoxide poisoning in the days following the storm because of improper use of barbecue cookers and generators indoors. The name of the storm was chosen in a contest run by the National Weather Service office in Seattle from about 8,000 entries.
The storm left heavy damage across Washington, especially tree damage. The fallen trees knocked down many power lines and closed many roads as well. Seattle-Tacoma International Airport partially lost power, canceling most flights. Flooding was also reported in low-lying areas from the heavy rain.
The electricity grid was hit very hard, as about 1.2 million customers lost power in the state, and Puget Sound Energy reported that more than 75 percent of its circuits were damaged. Municipal utilities also suffered severe damage. In the Seattle area, several days after the storm hundreds of thousands of families still remained without power and many had to leave their homes and move into hotels or emergency shelters coping with the inclement weather. Major employers in the area were affected; the power outage forced Microsoft to shut down large portions of its campus in Redmond on December 15.
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